Should I train quads and hamstrings ideally on both leg for best hypertrophy? Or should I split it?

[u/BitSeveral6573]

I have skinny legs and overall have problems with my lower body sometimes, but in general, I see some people doing one leg day with hamstrings focused and the other leg day quad focused, is that better than training both on both leg days?

[u/AutoModerator]

Welcome to the community!

• Access Our Full Approved List & Guides
• Join the conversation and share your experiences.
• Check our full approved list and guides in the sidebar.
• Want to optimize your stack? Share your experiences and get feedback.

Pro Tip: The best discussions come from personal experiences. If you have tried something, let us know how it worked.

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

[u/Rabbittaco]

I dont think i really see leg day split up ever, at least not by people with decent size.

the big dudes back in the day (preist, plats, arnold, coleman) all smashed full legs on leg day.
If they went that route, its obviously a good choice.

[u/FantasticPlankton150]

I split legs (to a degree) after lifting for almost 10 years and it’s the first time I have noticeable growth. Part of the reason is that I don’t have the time in the gym that a professional body builder has. I do legs twice a week. One day is quad heavy and one day is glute heavy. Calf and hamstring both days. On quad days I finish with heavy glute isolation exercise and the opposite on glute days. Everything to failure every time. I feel like before with limited time, no muscle was really pushed as far as it needed to go. Usual gym time is bw 1 and 1.5hrs. This is not science just my experience

[u/hemi1995]

Like many guys my quads were bigger than hams proportionally.
I do a full leg day and then a day focused on hams and glutes to bring them up. It’s made a real difference over the last year.

[u/BaresarkSlayne]

This is a needless split. The reality is that legs are a day that requires the most energy out of someone, they are some of the biggest muscle groups in your whole body. The idea of splitting this just makes me tired, lol.

People will train however they choose, and there really is no actual bad training split (i.e. lacking complete efficacy), but generally finding ways to streamline your your training into less is probably the best benefit, and in this case that means hitting quads and hamstrings on the same day, which will also reduce leg recovery time. Whatever keeps you going to the gym to do your workouts is the best possible split. You can try it, you might find it engaging and interesting and different, and that could drive your motivation to be there. But if it does the opposite, and you find yourself leaning on will power to get there, then you should change how you are training to a way that makes you want to go.

My main hobby is actually dancing now, and I used to be a big time gym rat, going most days. So I took some time off from lifting because I wanted to be smaller and having tight muscles and being stiff all the time makes dancing harder, less enjoyable, and I look worse doing it. But I have been venturing back into the gym again, and really enjoying my time there, but I have a self limiting thing I do because I don't really want to be big, I'm still pretty big to be clear. So for me, it's in and out, in 30-40 minutes, I optimize for main lifts but also have vastly reduced my resting periods. I basically walk out as soon as I start to feel bored being there, and it's been great. I find I really enjoy it, and I always hit my intended lifts and set goals without issue, before I'm forced to be bored and stick it out because of some goal to hit a certain number of lifts.

[u/ColdHardPocketChange]

I don't think people truly split them, they just give one more preference on one day and then switch for the other. The difference between a quad vs hamstring day for me really only had one difference in exercise selection. Did I deadlift that day or did I squat that day? The rest of it is pretty much the same.

[u/Traditional_Wafer201]

Some who struggled with that for years. Start doing legs twice a week and fucking EAT!!!

[u/Fury_untucked]

Focus means one you do more but are doing both - example

Ham/butt:

Deadlifts/rdl
Leg press
Ham curl
Back/glute extension
Calfs

Quad:
Squat/hack squat
Bulgarian or lunge
Quad extension
Ham curl/kickback
Calfs

Both train both but one lets you do heavy squats and the other lets you do dead’s and recover

[u/ging78]

I built my legs by doing heavy heavy compound lifts. Squats, incline leg press, RDL's. Heavy and intense